How Psychometric Testing Can Support Recruitment in a Remote Working World

The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted many to work remotely from home. This sudden, mass relocation of staff from their primary office-based workplaces to their remote working locations presents many challenges. While technology enables workers to carry out their defined roles from their home working locations the psychological impact on individuals working alone from their home-based offices must be considered when recruiting.

Traits of Successful Homeworkers

Working from home, alone, doesn’t suit everyone. While some personality types thrive in home based work environments others do better in a 9 to 5 office based situation.

Successful home workers possess a number of valuable traits with self motivation at the top of the list. Many successful home workers are motivated by a strong entrepreneurial drive. They don’t need direction and they are happy to take responsibility for their decisions. 

Another trait that’s essential for successful home working is excellent communications skills. The absence of face to face meetings means most communication from home offices is carried out via email, telephone, online chat tools (e.g. Slack) and video conferencing (e.g. Zoom). Effective written and verbal communication skills are therefore essential.

Office based working will often have the benefit of an IT department, responsible for the company network and all aspects of information security. Homeworkers don’t have any IT professionals they can call on when their computer crashes or when they can’t establish a Wifi connection. Homeworkers therefore need the skills and confidence necessary to look after their IT needs and ensure data security.

The ability to work independently and self-evaluate are also important attributes for remote workers. The absence of external feedback means homeworkers must critically assess their own work and always be on the lookout for opportunities to improve efficiency.

Psychometric Assessment for Remote Workers

Recruitment into the world of remote working requires the assessment of the traits necessary for success in this new working paradigm. Psychometric assessment and testing can be effectively used to determine whether prospective candidates have the skills, attitudes and attributes they need.

Behaviour tests provide detailed insight into a person’s strengths, weaknesses and limitations. Assessments will investigate their communications style, determine what motivates them and uncover their fears. These tests will also determine how they respond to pressure and how they are likely to cope with some of the typical challenges faced when working from home.

Aptitude assessments get into the practical skills necessary to successfully work remotely. Tests look at a person’s reasoning skills, numeracy, language capabilities and spatial visualisation. Aptitude assessment for remote working should ensure they have what’s needed to work remotely, such as specific IT skills.

Workplace personality assessment examines a person’s suitability for a specific job. For remote workers it’s important to determine whether they have the necessary personality traits to happily and productively work remotely with minimal supervision or support.

Benefits of Psychometric Testing for Homeworkers

The most significant benefit in using psychometric assessments and tests when recruiting people into remote working roles is the identification and selection of candidates who can thrive in this working environment. 

Many people aren’t entrepreneurial and may not be very self-motivated. They may need close management and ongoing direction that makes them unsuitable for remote working positions.

Excellent communications skills are essential for successful remote working and psychometric assessment will uncover these. It will ensure that anyone shortlisted for a remote working position has excellent written and verbal communication skills, vital for successful remote working.

Aptitude assessment should confirm that candidates have the required technical IT skills to set up and use the hardware and software needed for remote working. Assessment will also beneficially highlight training they are likely to need during their onboarding process to ensure data security and compliance with statutory requirements.

Psychometric personality assessment will highlight whether an individual is capable of working entirely independently. It will also confirm they are able to productively self-evaluate and continuously seek opportunities to improve efficiencies and the quality of their work.

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